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The descendants of a Jewish couple have brought a case against New York's Metropolitan Museum, asserting that a the Dutch artist canvas was seized by the Nazis.

Case History

As stated in the court documents, Hedwig and Frederick Stern purchased the artwork, titled Olive Harvest, in the year 1935. Just one year later, they were obliged to escape their dwelling in Munich, Germany prior to WWII.

The complaint contends that the museum, which obtained the masterpiece in the 1950s for $125,000, ought to have been aware it was almost certainly looted property. The heirs are now demanding the repatriation of the canvas along with compensation.

Since the end of WWII, this Nazi-looted painting has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, bought and sold in and through the city of New York, claims the lawsuit.

The Sterns' Escape

Hedwig and Frederick Stern escaped from their Munich home to America in the late 1930s with their offspring due to the oppressive Nazi regime. However, they were unable to bring the artwork, which was produced by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Before they left, the Nazi government designated the masterpiece as property of the state and forbade the family from exporting it. Once approved from a Nazi official, a representative appointed by the authorities disposed of the painting on the Sterns' behalf. Yet, the money from the sale were placed in a restricted account, which the regime later took.

Post-War History

By 1948, or shortly after, the canvas entered NYC and was bought by Vincent Astor, among the richest individuals in the US. Later, it was transferred through a gallery to the museum, which then transferred it to Greek shipping magnate Goulandris and his wife, Mrs. Goulandris, in the early 1970s.

The Greek couple set up the BEG in the late 1970s, which operates a museum in Athens where the artwork is currently on display.

Court Allegations

The institution and a family member of Basil Goulandris are listed as respondents. The lawsuit alleges that the family and its affiliates have covered up the masterpiece's history and current place from the heirs.

To this day, the foundation continue to conceal the manner and time the BEG came into control of the piece; the family's possession of the artwork from several years; and the reality that the regime confiscated the canvas from the family, coerced the couple into disposing of it via a regime representative, and seized the money of the sale.

Prior Cases

The Stern heirs initiated a comparable case in CA in 2022, but it was thrown out in 2024. An appeal was also rejected in recently.

Institution's Statement

The lawsuit contends that the Met's purchase of the piece was sanctioned by a curator, the Met's authority of European art and a leading authority on Nazi-era looted art. The curator and the museum must have known that the masterpiece had probably been looted by the Nazis.

The Met issued a statement that it is committed to its ongoing pledge to resolve issues related to WWII.

A representative stated: Not once during The Met's ownership of the artwork was there any evidence that it had earlier been possessed to the heirs – indeed, that data did not become available until several decades after the artwork left the institution's holdings.

The museum's disposal of the artwork met the institution's rigorous standards for deaccessioning – namely, it was noted that the work was considered to be of lower caliber than additional artworks of the similar kind in the collection. Although the institution maintains its view that this work entered the inventory and was deaccessioned lawfully and well within all rules and regulations, the Met is open to and will review any additional details that comes to light.

Goulandris Statement

William Charron acting for the Goulandris Foundation said: The institution is a highly prestigious organization in Athens. The action to take legal action against the institution and the defendants in the United States upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was already thrown out, on two occasions. We are certain it will be a third time.